Thirty Kisses
by hazeleyedharmony
Summary: A collection of one-shots
1. Perfect Blue

_Author's Note: i found this challenge on live journal and well, i don't have one so instead of setting up an account and going through all that crap i decided to do it on here!  
so the thirty kisses challenge is that there are thirty themes and you pick a couple and for each theme you write a story (they can very in length. mine will most likely always be these small little scenarios)  
the themes can be in any order also you can incorporate more than one theme per fic but i probably won't.(and themes are open to interpretation)  
the thing is each ficmust involves kiss (either physical/metaphorical/figurative or even a Hershey_ _kiss haha)  
so yeah, enjoy!_

THEME: #15- Perfect Blue  
COUPLE: Zoe/Kouichi (as it will be for all 30)(i love this couple, plus they're easy to write about)

**disclaimer:** **if i owned digimon would i be on fanfiction?**

(in Zoe's point of view)

* * *

I didn't like it. In fact, I hated it. I hated that look he gave me when he thought I wasn't looking. It was the weirdest look anyone has ever given me and he was the only one who ever gave me that look. But I really shouldn't let it get to me like that. And I won't anymore. So at our Saturday morning group breakfast my goal was to not let that look affect me.

"Over here." Kouichi called from our normal table. Why did it have to be him? Couldn't it have been Kouji?

"Hey guys!" I called back as I not so gracefully ran into an occupied table. As the others laughed Kouichi gave me that look! I haven't explained that look yet have I? Well, it was like a half-bemused half-entertained look. It's hard to explain but needless to say, it drove me crazy.

"Seriously Z, it didn't sneak up on you." Takuya gasped through laughter. I chose to be a bigger person and not respond to that comment instead I simply slapped him in the back of the head. The others took this as a cue to stop.

"So I think we should check out a movie." Tommy suggested as we began planning our day.

"We should play laser tag, that'd be awesome," Takuya said through his mouthful of French toast. By the look on Kouji's face, I could tell that we would not be doing that anytime soon. So I suggested we go for a walk.

"That's perfect! We can see all the leaves changing colors, it'll be very romantic." J.P. cooed to me. I couldn't help but to cringe at this. Don't get me wrong I love J.P. but only as a brother and for some reason I can't bring myself to flat out reject him. Besides, it's been three years; you'd think he'd get it by now.

So after breakfast we walked for, I don't know probably five miles before Tommy remembered something he had to do and had to leave taking J.P. with him. The rest of us decided to keep going; it was a beautiful day so why waste it? Well, all was going well until Kouichi gave me that look again! I can't even remember what I did to make him look at me that way, anyways it was the last straw. I grabbed Kouichi's arm and dragged him a little down the path while yelling for Kouji and Takuya to stay put.

"What's up?" Kouichi said rather calmly when I let go of him. I hate to say it but I never seemed to bother him. He was always so calm with me and right now it was infuriating.

"You're driving me crazy!" I practically screamed. He didn't even flinch at this, he just gave me that look!

"How so?" he asked nonchalantly, leaning against a tree.

"That look! For the past three years you've given me that look! There it is again! Stop it!" Ok, maybe I was being a little over dramatic but trust me, you would too.

"Oh Zoe" he chuckled as he walked from the tree and put his hand on my shoulder. "I'm sorry, I won't ever look at you like that again."

And at that moment I realized why that look drove me crazy. It was something I over looked every other time. His look was so full of understanding that it almost took me by surprise. I finally knew why he was the only one to give me that look, he was the only one who knew me that well. And at that moment I knew that as long as that look was coming from his perfect blue eyes I loved that look. It was then that I did something pretty stupid. I grabbed his shirt collar with both hands, pulled him in and kissed him. I quickly let go when I realized how completely insane I was acting.

"I'm sorry." I mumbled while staring intently at the ground. I couldn't believe I just did that! It was defiantly the dumbest thing I've ever done. I did not want to see his face right now. So we just stood there, me in horror at what I had just done and him in shock. Then he did the weirdest thing; he began laughing. Not hysterically but a very sweet chuckle. I looked up curiously, still blushing wildly, only to find him giving me that look again.

"Don't be." he whispered as he put his arm around my waist and kissed me! I had a feeling that wouldn't be the last time he gave me that look with his perfect blue eyes.

* * *

_Author's Note: this is a great way to get rid of writer's block! so yep, haha i hope you liked it! and yeah it was short, sorry most likely they will all be this short unless i get really inspired and make one longer._


	2. Our Distance And That Person

theme: #4 our distance and that person

_Author's Note: well this is how i interpreted this theme, it's not as direct as the last one but i think it works enjoy!_

**disclaimer: guess**

* * *

"Welcome home!" Tommy, Takuya, Kouji, Kouichi and J.P. yelled as soon as they saw their blonde friend. A little over a year ago Zoe's father had taken a job in Italy and the whole family moved to Ancona. It was the first time in four years that any member of the group had spent substantial time away from the others.

The moment Zoe saw them she threw down her bags and ran across the lobby and into her friends' arms. Yes, even Kouji joined into the group hug. "I've missed you guys so much." Zoe laughed as the group began to let go of her.

"Then why'd you leave us?" Tommy whined without letting go of Zoe's waist.

"Well, I'm not exactly old enough to live on my own; I don't really have a choice." She said squeezing the boy tighter.

"Come on Tommy; leave some for the rest of us." J.P. laughed as he pulled Zoe out of Tommy's death grip and into his own. "Why'd you leave us?"

"Oh come on! I had to. You all know that. I'm sorry." Zoe said, prying herself out of his arms. "I'm only here for the week; please don't make it one big guilt trip."

"Then don't leave us again." Takuya said, picking up Zoe's bags and going back towards the group.

"Knock it off guys." Kouji said walking over to Zoe and placing a hand on her shoulder. "We did miss you though." Zoe just smiled and pulled him into a hug.

"You're quiet Kouichi; you didn't miss me?" Zoe laughed as she let go of Kouji and walked over to his brother.

"Of course I did it's just, you look different." Kouichi mumbled to Zoe who was standing a little less than a foot from him.

"How so?" she giggled until she saw how serious and almost sad he looked.

"You look older, not old; just you know, older." he muttered, avoiding her gaze.

"It has been a while." she whispered with a sad smile.

"Fifteen months, three weeks, five days." Kouichi said, still keeping his voice down.

"I've missed you so much." Zoe whispered, throwing her arms around Kouichi.

---- (One week later) -------

"I hate this!" Tommy cried, throwing his arms around Zoe's waist. All six were waiting in the airport lobby for Zoe's flight to be called.

"Listen to me," she said bending down so she was eye level with him. "I'll be back, I promise." Tommy just nodded while allowing his tears to spill over and hugging Zoe again.

When Zoe let go of Tommy she stood face to face with Takuya who was wearing his trademark grin. "Now who am I supposed to argue with?"

Zoe merely smiled and punched him on the shoulder. "I think you'll find somebody." She said hugging him tightly.

"Take care of yourself buddy." Takuya whispered as he let go of her and Zoe made her way to J.P.

"Here, for your flight." J.P. said handing here a couple bars of chocolate. Zoe, and the others, burst into laughter.

"Thank you." She said hugging him. "Jeez, I'm gonna miss you." she chuckled before she walked over to the twins.

"Keep in touch." Kouji said as he hugged her. She knew that Kouji wasn't good with emotion so that he hugged her first nearly made her day.

She then turned to Kouichi who was again avoiding her gaze. "Kouichi." she muttered, tears filling her eyes. He silently grabbed her and hugged her tightly. "Why do you have to make this so hard?" she chuckled as she buried her head in his chest.

The two stood their in silence until her flight was called and Kouichi loosened his hold on Zoe only to have her hold on tighter. "I don't want to go." she muttered, and Kouichi could feel her tears on his shirt.

"I know, but you have to." Kouichi whispered, kissing the top of her head. Zoe gave Kouichi one last squeeze before letting go and walking towards the gate.

When Zoe was out of sight Kouji turned to his brother. "You never told her you like her did you?"

"No, she has enough to deal with. I don't want her to feel worse." Kouichi muttered and the five left the airport.

* * *

_Author's Note: i hope you like it!!!!_


	3. Goodnight

Theme: #24 Goodnight

_Author's Note: Greetings! i really like this particular story and i hope you do too! as a side note my other story is on hiatus so i don't mess it up any way enjoy this one!_

**Disclaimer: Not mine. never has been. never will be**

* * *

It had been nearly two hours and she hadn't moved from her spot. She sat on a bench across from an elevator in Shibuya station, not watching or waiting just sitting, staring into space. Finally she stood and walked out of the station.

She wasn't that concerned about where she was going all that mattered is if she kept herself busy then she wouldn't have time to think. So she walked through the streets in the late March drizzle-taking note of every little detail she passed until she found herself standing in front of a familiar apartment complex. Her first instinct was to just walk in, as it was usually unlocked. It was nearly ten-thirty at night however, so she doubted it was unlocked at this particular moment.

So instead of knocking she sat on the doorstep and buried her head in her knees in silence until the door opened a short while later. "What the hell Zoe?" Kouichi whispered after jumping slightly at the sight of his blonde friend, forgetting why he had gone outside in the first place. He quickly regained his composure and reached down to help her stand up.

"I'm sorry," Zoe muttered avoiding his gaze. When they finally made eye contact Kouichi noticed her eyes were bloodshot and her lip was bleeding; from experience he knew it was because she had been chewing her lip.

"Are you ok?" he asked and she was quiet, hesitant, unlike herself until she shakily shook her head.

"No."

He said nothing but ran his hands down her back and pulled her into a hug. After a few moments he turned her so she was facing him, their noses only inches apart. He looked at her softly, hardly breathing, understanding, not knowing, not even loving, just comprehending, comprehending what she needed.

"Will you go on a walk with me?" she asked, her voice barely remaining steady. He simply nodded his head and shut his front door. The two walked in silence for nearly an hour under the crescent moon until they reached a quiet riverbank where they sat, still in silence, and skipped rocks for a while. "Can we stay like this forever?" she whispered.

"Sitting on wet ground, throwing rocks, at midnight?" Kouichi chuckled.

"Not exactly," She whispered, smiling sadly. "I mean where we are in life. Everything's just, you know, good." Kouichi could tell by the tone of her voice that she really wanted to tell someone, tell him, what was going on.

"Come on, it's too cold tonight." Kouichi said, suddenly standing up and holding his hand out to help Zoe up and the two walked in silence toward Zoe's house until she spoke up.

"I'm not ready to go home yet. Can we go to your apartment?" Zoe whimpered tugging on Kouichi's sleeve like a small child. It was all too weird for him, he had never seen Zoe this vulnerable.

"It's after midnight Zoe, your parents…" Kouichi began to explain until he saw the look in her eyes. "Of course we can." Kouichi's mother was still at work when they reached his home so they didn't need to worry about waking her up or explaining why Zoe was there.

After nearly a half an hour of sitting on his couch, staring at the blank T.V., Kouichi turned and faced Zoe in silence. She quickly glanced at him and turned her attention back to the T.V., her eyes swelling with tears.

"Whenever you're ready." Kouichi said gently. Tears began to flow from Zoe's face and she buried her head in her hands so he couldn't see her tears. "Zoe, it's ok, you can tell me."

She let a small sob escape and quickly walked to the window and leaned against the glass facing the night sky. Kouichi silently moved behind her and joined her in staring at the moon. After a few moments Zoe broke down, gripping the windowsill for support. As Kouichi stood their watching her he realized how hard it was to see someone change right before his eyes. The confident girl he once knew was no longer standing in front of him. He wasn't sure how to handle her. He wanted to comfort her but he wasn't quite sure how. So he quietly lead her to the couch and sat next to her rubbing her back in a consoling way.

"I don't want to leave," Zoe whimpered, leaning into Kouichi.

He wrapped his arms around her and whispered, "Tell me what's going on."

She took a few deep breaths and sat up straight, eyes still glistening with tears. "I'm going back to Ancona, in three weeks."

"What!" Kouichi exclaimed, leaning back in shock while Zoe's tears poured over again at his reaction. Kouichi quickly collected himself and calmly asked, "Only to visit?" he knew the answer by the prior events but he wouldn't believe it until she said it.

She bit her lip and shook her head. "My dad, my dad was promoted. It's his dream job. We leave in three weeks." She stuttered, wiping her eyes rigorously.

"Does anyone else know?" he whispered trying to fight back the tears that were forming in his eyes. She bit her lip harder and shook her head again.

"Everything's going to change" She muttered, standing up from the couch. Kouichi firmly grabbed her wrist and stood up also.

"No, nothing will change." he said calmly. "I won't let it."

"I've done this before Kouichi. For the first few weeks you guys will miss me, then you'll slowly move on…and forget me." She sobbed, wrapping her arms around him. "Or you'll replace me. Either way everyone wins but me."

"Zoe that will never happen." Kouichi said, pulling her off him and holding her at arms length.

"It'll never be the same," She whimpered, trembling slightly.

"Zoe, you are way too young to not believe it is going to be ok" Kouichi whispered, pulling her into a hug.

"I really want to believe." Zoe muttered into his chest and broke down in sobs. Kouichi merely let her cry and stroked the back of her head.

Once Zoe had calmed down the two were back on the couch, Kouichi with his arm draped around her shoulders and Zoe breathing deeply to keep herself calm. "I'm sorry, you probably want to sleep. It's just well they've, my parents, have been packing all day and, and that make it too real." She said in a relatively steady voice.

"You can stay all long as you need, just call and tell them where you are." Kouichi said handing her her cell phone. She took the phone and Kouichi went to the Kitchen and called his mom to tell her Zoe would be there when she got home.

When Kouichi went back to the family room he found Zoe watching Law & Order. He quietly sat down next to her and the two watched in silence until Kouichi felt Zoe's head on his shoulder .He chuckled a little when he found her asleep, so he continued to watch T.V. in fear that if he moved he would wake her.

-----

Zoe's eyes shot open when she woke and realized she was still at Kouichi's house. When she tried to sit up she found that she was lying on top of Kouichi. He was snoring slightly and had his arm draped over her back and she couldn't help but to chuckle a little at this.

"Goodnight, Kouichi" She whispered, kissing his check and resting her head back on his chest and shutting her eyes.

"Goodnight" He mumbled, squeezing her gently and going back to sleep. This made Zoe smile and she let her self fall back asleep while safe in his arms.

* * *

_Author's Note: this was kind of a prequel to my last story i just didn't want to tell you at the beginning because i thought it would ruin the "surprise" anyway i hope you liked it!!_


	4. 10

Theme: #10- #10 (yes that is the real theme hahaha)

_pre author's note: for some reason the last chapter freaks out when i try to read it and if it does the same for any of you just message me and i'll send it to you_

_Author's note: so i read a quote and i instantly thought of a story but i couldn't find a theme that fit it so this theme was very roughly translated. as a totally random side note one of my friends was in a coma once. it was fourth grade and he was playing baseball during a thunderstorm and a tree branch broke and hit him in the head. it only lasted four days but it was mind blowing at such a young age. haha i remember the first day he came back to visit he was standing in the hallway with the principal and our whole class ran over and engulfed him in a huge group hug. hahha wow that was random rambling. i know that probably sounds completely fake but i swear it's true. anyway enjoy!_

* * *

Ten weeks. It had been ten weeks since they returned to their world and still Kouichi hadn't woken from his coma. And in those ten weeks Kouji, Takuya, Zoe, J.P. and Tommy had become regulars at the hospital.

----

"Hey Kouichi!" Zoe called as she pulled a chair up to his bedside. After getting to rowdy in past visit's the doctors limited the visits to one person at a time.

"So this morning before they'd let us see you we sat with your mom and she told us some stories about when you were young. You would have been so embarrassed but it was really nice and then we all started telling our own little stories, you know without saying anything about the digital world. I won't tell you what the others said but do you want to know what I said?" Though part of her hated these one sided conversations she couldn't help but to love the ability to talk without the slightest chance of being chastised.

"Well, I told them all the great things about you, and there were a lot. I talked for a while. I didn't tell them everything, though. I left out the complicated stuff," She said, frowning slightly at the unconscious boy.

"Like how it's taking losing you for me to truly find you. And how finding you is turning me into someone else entirely. That's not what they wanted to hear. They wanted to hear that I think you're great. And you are great. They want to know I miss you. And I do." She said smiling once again while pushing Kouichi's hair out of his eyes. "It's weird though, I feel like the only one who would understand this is you. Anyway, I left that all out and kept it simple. I told them I loved being your friend just like I always have and just like I always will, and that's the truth."

"I tell you this everyday and I'm sure everyone tells you this but we really miss you and lately Kouji hasn't been doing so well. He's pulling away again. The only time we see him is here; he won't pick up his phone and even here he rarely talks, he only responds to direct questions. He needs you Kouichi." She muttered the last sentence, trying to mask the guilt in her voice. Sure she hated that Kouji was withdrawing but at least she could still see him.

She lulled into silence for nearly half an hour while she tried to find the right was to phrase what she was thinking.

"I'm scared Kouichi." she finally said, grabbing his hand gently "I'm really, really scared. Me and J.P. overheard some doctors and they don't know what's going to happen when you wake up. They're guessing that you'll loose some memory. Please don't. I know I sound so selfish but I don't care. I mean it makes sense that the first thing you'd forget would be the digital world. Please don't forget us. I know the digital world has brought you pain and I know that you were still coping with what you did. But I know you; you're not one to give up. I promise I'll help you through this." She whispered while squeezing his hand as though trying to hold the memories in.

"The doctor also said, she also said she doesn't know if you'll wake up. That terrified me but I always tell the others not to worry and that you'll be fine. I just need someone to reassure me and it needs to be you." she muttered, biting her lip to keep from crying, as was her new habit.

"I really wish I could have you respond to this Kouichi, but I love you. Seriously, I'm in love with you. And I don't know why I'm only just realizing it but I really am. I hate this, living without you, and I don't want to do this anymore. Not for another minute. Please wake up Kouichi." and with that Zoe kissed his forehead and turned to leave until she heard a slight groan from his bed.

She turned and stared awe-struck. "Kouichi? Oh god!" she screamed when he let out another groan.

"You guys come here!" She said, running into the lobby, and a few attendings. Without a second of hesitation Ms. Kimura and the other four ran at full speed into Kouichi's room.

The five friends stopped when they reached his room and allowed is mother to reach the bed first. "Sweetie? Kouichi? Can you hear me? Honey please, say something." She said, sobbing.

Kouichi's eyes flickered slightly and he let out another groan and whispered, "Mom," before he was cut off by his mother's spine crushing hug. She soon let go of him and walked over to the window for she couldn't control her sobbing.

When she let go of him Kouichi hoisted himself into a sitting position and smiled weakly at his friends. "Don't worry you guys, I remember you." and with that they collectively let out a sigh and ran to his bedside.

The boys took turns slapping his back and giving him words of encouragement and Zoe leaned through the others and wrapped her arms securely around Kouichi's shoulders. It was in that hug that, as tears began flowing down her cheeks, Zoe knew how much she needed Kouichi. While most people would haven given her a hug and let go he held on as though he was trying to make sense of it too; as if he needed the hug as much as she did.

Once the doctors got over the initial shock of what had just happened they began emptying the room so they could run some tests.

"Zoe," Kouichi mumbled as the doctors were ushering everyone out of the room. She glanced nervously at one of the doctors who gave her a curt nod and Zoe walked over to his bedside.

He weakly grabbed her hand and smiled at the confused girl. "I love you too."

* * *

_Author's note: that was slightly shorted than normal but i hope you all liked it anyway! _


	5. If Only I Could Make You Mine

_Author's note: welcome to my shortest story ever! i haven't written in forever and i had some free time today (for the first time in weeks! and it's only because my practice time was changed so we could be inside. and the only reason we're inside is because it's snowing... yeah snowing in april!!! i love ohio) so i decided to write this. i know it's short but don't worry the next installment of thirty kisses will be a sequal to this and much longer (i hope) but it might be a while before i update cause i have very little free time honestly i spent 11 hours at a track meet saturday...11 hours! so yeah i'm very busy. so anyway i hope you enjoy it and i know it's short but besides my lack of free time i thought that if i extended this it might lose the feeling i was trying to convey. oh and because i suck at describing things here's what Zoe's dress would have looked like:_ http:// www. formal dress 4u .co .uk/ acatalog/ na01. htm l# a44 (without spaces) yes i know i'm weird like that!! anyway...

theme: #26- if only i could make you mine

(in Kouichi's point of view)

* * *

So here we are at our prom, it should be the greatest night of our lives. We- Takuya, Zoe myself and my brother - all decided that we'd go together without dates. And instead of a fancy dinner we ordered pizza and watched a movie at Kouji's completely dressed up, yeah it definitely started awesome. The best part was all of us dressing up. I think this was the first time Takuya's ever worn a button-up shirt and Kouji didn't wear a bandana. Do I even need to mention Zoe? She looked gorgeous as usual. Picking out the dress was an…interesting experience. But in the end it worked out and now we're in this almost fairytale like setting while everyone is having the time of her life.

I can't exactly say the same for me. I would be except…

This isn't how it should be; I should be kissing her hand and leading her across the dance floor. Yes, I know I can't dance to save my life but even so she should be trying her best not to laugh and I should be trying my best to follow her lead.

But I'm not. I'm sitting here watching. I'm watching her fall for a guy that isn't me. I should be happy for her; Takuya's a great guy, they fit well together. They're both brash and funny. They'd both do anything for their friends. Yeah, they definitely belong together.

I guess I always knew this was how it would end. It was always going to be him and the worst part is that I'm letting him. I'm letting him take the only girl I've ever felt this way about. But she's happy so I must be too.

Even though I want her to be happy and I know that Takuya will make her happy I can't help but to think that maybe, just maybe I'm meant to be the guy that makes her eyes sparkle. I mean we certainly go well together. From the beginning, she refused to let me wallow in the memories of what I've done. She saved me from myself. A part of everything I did in the digital world was for her. I needed her to believe that I was going to be alright and that I was not living in the past.

And I'd like to think I bring out a calm, sweet side to her. She always seems to relax when I'm around. And she's certainly more rational. Or maybe my level-headedness offsets her recklessness. Either way we balance each other.

But I'm not supposed to mean that much to her nor will I ever. I will forever be her friend and nothing more.

Tonight she will call me and tell me how she has come to realize her feelings for Takuya, just as she has for every other guy she's liked. And like always I will encourage her; I will tell her what an amazing person she is and how any guy would be lucky to have her. Then she'll thank me and hang up to call him, never knowing that I'd give anything to have her look at me the same way I look at her.

But no, I am her friend and if that's the only way I'm to be in her life than I can live with that. As long as she's happy, it doesn't matter what happens to me. I guess my only role in her life is to be her confidant and to wipe the tears off her face when the boy she's fallen for breaks her heart.

I don't think I'll need to do that this time though. Takuya's also one of my best friends and I know he'll treat her well. She's finally going to get the man of her dreams. And I, well at least I can say I've loved.

* * *

author's note: i told you it was short anyway i hope you liked it !


	6. Excessive Chain

_Author's note: hola mis amigos. So I've had a pretty hectic life and finally had some down time so I could write this! This was my life since I've last updated: I had prom, my last day of high school, track districts and regionals, senior recognition (I'm graduating with honors!) and I think that's all the major things but now I have to deal with actual graduation (which is Monday) and an insane load of graduation parties (there are literally seven in one day) so yeah I don't know when I'll update next but until then enjoy this installment of thirty kisses which is a sequel to the last chapter!_

theme: #13 excessive chain (in Kouichi's point of view)  
**disclaimer: really?**

* * *

"You gonna get that?" a groggy Kouji asked me as my phone rang at four o'clock in the morning. Lucky for me I'm a decent enough actor that when I didn't respond he assumed I was still asleep. I was almost able to pull it off perfectly until I heard him reach to pick it up. "It's Zoe." he said, still half asleep.

And with those two words he knew I was awake. I instantly tensed up and he began to snicker. "Fine" I mumbled, snatching the phone from his hand and preceding to the bathroom so he couldn't overhear our conversation.

"Oh my God!" were her first breathless words. I was instantly curious but soon I remembered what had happened earlier that night and I waited patiently for her to continue. "He's so amazing!" she nearly squealed.

"I'm glad." I said through gritted teeth in a voice that was so callous I almost didn't recognize it. Luckily for me she so far in her own world that she didn't notice my tone.

"At first I had my doubts; I mean we've been friends for so long I completely over looked-" and she was off, rambling on about Takuya. I'm ashamed to say it but I honestly couldn't stand to hear his name. It was the way she was saying it- she was just so happy it was almost disgusting.

Ten minutes in I was no longer listening I only grunted my agreement or mumbled an "of course" every time she paused for breath. This is the first time I'd ever done that. It doesn't make me a bad person does it?

Apparently she was paying more attention to me than I was to her and she drew my attention back to her call with an in impatient, "Kouichi!"

"Yes?" I said in a cold tone - jeez I needed to get a hold of myself.

"Were you even listening to me?" she said and I actually laughed at her; I laughed a bitter chuckle. And honestly I would have been better for me if I would have just hung up the phone then and there, but no I'm not that fortunate.

"Yeah, he's amazing, you're an idiot for never noticing, you'd give anything to have realized this earlier; am I missing anything?" I nearly spat. I don't know what had come over me but I was angry for no reason, well at the wrong person at least.

"What's with you?" she asked in a genuinely curious tone.

"Doesn't matter. Go back to talking about yourself some more," I said trying to calm myself down.

"Oh really?" for some reason the tone of her voice annoyed me. She sounded so offended even though I was being a complete asshole and she should have hung up on me ten minutes ago it made me more angry.

"I said it doesn't matter. So do you have any more spectacular news or can I go back to sleep?" I sneered. Jeez I hate myself for saying that, even over the phone I could tell she was about to cry.

For a brief period all I could here was her light sniffles and I really wish I would have apologized then but I hate to say it: it kind of felt good to let off a little stem. "Wow, could you be a bigger asshole right now? I mean really, I'd expect this from Kouji but never you." She finally said and if you would have heard her tone of voice you'd have thought she was talking to Duskmon or something.

"Well then, shows how well you know me." I said in a completely uninterested tone.

"Up until a minute ago I'd say that I knew you pretty damn well. Guess I was wrong." she sniffed- I'm officially the biggest ass ever.

"Yep. Seems like it." I huffed.

And with her voice dripping with sarcasm she said, "Well then, enlighten me, please."

"Can't figure it out on your own?" I mocked, hating myself more with every word.

"I've done nothing!" she cried sounding truly hurt, in almost an innocent way like when a child is told that their dog won't be coming back from the vet.

"Really?" I scoffed "Ok, let's play a game guess who I am: 'Oh my gawd… he's amazing… guess what- he kissed me… I think I might love him' than two weeks later: 'He's an asshole …I can't believe he did that… It's all my fault, I'm ugly, he deserves better, and I hate myself."

"Was that supposed to be me?" She said sounding slightly disgusted.

I completely ignored her remark, I was off on my dissertation and simply couldn't stop. "Now guess who I am: 'No Zoe, you're perfect, if he doesn't see that don't you think you deserve better."

"I don't understand" she whispered.

"Well if you were the least bit observant you would, but hey no surprise there." I said chuckling slightly.

"Ok Kouichi, this is getting old. I don't want to fight with you so either tell me what's wrong or this conversation's over." she said and went silent. I was about to retaliate when I caught my reflection in the mirror and I was disgusted. I had a look in my eye I had never seen before and I never want to see again.

"You're right…I'm sorry Zoe." I finally said, and when I did all my anger left. I guess I never knew how much of an effect years of harbored jealousy can have on a person.

"Is everything ok?" Zoe finally asked.

"Honestly?" I said, my voice shaking slightly, not out of anger though.

"Is there any other way?" She said, in the way only Zoe can speak. It's like even though she's not in the room you can feel her emerald eyes piercing into you; it's a little intimidating.

"I guess I'm just tired of your excessive chain of guys. I'm sorry I snapped at you, start over I'll listen this time." I said, trying to sound more cheerful.

"Wait, I've been annoying you this whole time?" she sounded so hurt and confused it was kind of hard to respond.

"No, it's just…can I be one hundred percent honest with you?" I asked mustering up my courage.

"Yes, of course." she whispered.

"Ok, don't say anything until I finish. You've never been annoying it's just for at least the past four years every time you met a new guy I was the first person you'd call and I'd give you some advice or tiny words of wisdom. Don't get me wrong I love listening to you and I want you to be happy but it always ended the same. You two would break up for some inane reason and I was always the first person you'd call. And every time you'd blame yourself and tell me how you hate yourself. Then I would tell you what an amazing person you are. It was so hard to listen to these guys slowly destroy your confidence. And honestly it killed me to watch you struggle with your relationships. But a small part of me was proud that you'd always call me at your best and worst points. But somewhere along the way I…" I couldn't say it, I knew what I wanted to say but I couldn't get it out.

"You what Kouichi?" she said and I could tell I had spiked her curiosity.

"I fell for you. Hell I probably fell for you back in The Digital World but I knew Takuya had too and I didn't want to step on his feet so I slumped into the background and let things happen naturally. So again, probably for the last time I'll give you my advice: Takuya is an amazing person. You two really do go well together. He'll keep you endlessly entertained and you'll keep him in check. You two will be amazing." I said while letting a silent tear fall from my eye.

"Kouichi…I…" she muttered. And I had my answer that I'd known all along.

"It's cool, I'll see you later. Goodnight." I said and hung up the phone before she could say anything else.

I was already in the bathroom and it was nearly five so I decided that there was no point in going back to bed. By the time I was out of the shower Kouji was awake and eating breakfast. I don't know how he knew but he didn't ask me about the phone call, maybe he had forgotten.

We had finished breakfast with just enough time to meet our friends in our regular spot. Right as we were about to leave the doorbell rang and still emotionally drained I trudged to the door. And before I had the door completely open I was bombarded by a throng of blonde hair as Zoe pulled me into a hug.

"I'm so sorry." she whispered into my ear and kissed my cheek before squeezing me tighter.

I honestly had no idea how to respond so I simply put my arms around her and returned the hug. When I did I felt her shake as she began to cry and I swore to myself that it was the last time I would ever make her cry.

* * *

_Author's note: well there you go. i think Kouichi might have been a little out of character and if you feel the same i'm sorry i tried. anyway i'll see you guys in whichever story i update next (and right now your guess is as good as mine)_


	7. Violence

_Author's note: wow i haven't update this thing in ages! mainly because I am really running out of ideas for this thing :/ so if anyone has any ideas for me please let me know, i'll be eternally gratefully! anyway this chapter is brought to you by vicodin! yes vicodin. i got all of my wisdom teeth out yesterday (when i wrote this), so that was fun haha. and i'm a bleeder so i got stitches on three of them and i was still bleeding pretty bad. then i broke one of the stitches so that started the bleeding again haha. but it didn't hurt at all (probably cause of the vicodin but oh well) sorry you probably don't want to hear about that haha anyway enjoy this chapter_

theme: #21 violence (in Kouichi's POV)(this theme was loosely translated, it's more of impending violence but oh well)  
**disclaimer in morris code: .. / -.. --- / -. --- - / --- .-- -. / -.. .. --. .. -- --- -.**

* * *

The tension in the air was palpable as we waited for the upcoming battle. Though we tried to mask it we all knew destruction was imminent, either ours or Lucemon's and we all hoped it was the later. I'll admit some were handling it better than others. J.P. was showing Tommy some magic tricks, probably to calm his nerves. Kouji and Takuya were arguing about/discussing the approaching fight, with them it's hard to tell some times. Zoe was off by herself being uncharacteristically quiet. I'm not sure where Bokomon and Neemon were, probably with Patomon and the others. And me, well I was still mulling over what Crusadermon had told me.

"We might as well be dead then!" Takuya practically yelled at Kouji, interrupting my train of thought. I couldn't help but to flinch a little when he said 'dead' and I noticed Zoe did too. I found that rather odd, and with curiosity getting the better of me I went over to her.

"You ok?" I asked as I sat next to her. At first she didn't respond and for a moment I wasn't sure if she knew I was there.

"I'm just worried I guess," she muttered softly. It wasn't like her to be that vague so naturally I assumed that she had more to say. When she didn't I knew that I was going to need to lead this conversation.

"About the fight?" I asked and she slowly nodded. "Don't worry, we'll beat him."

Zoe let out a forced chuckle before finally looking at me. "'Cause the good guys always win right? But at what cost?"

I was taken aback by her questions at first; she had always come off as such an optimist. "No, we'll win because we have to; we owe it to the digital world."

"But at what cost?" she asked again and I just raised an eyebrow, hoping that she would explain herself. "I just want all of us to make it out of this in one piece."

"Don't worry," I said with a small smile, "we can do this."

"But what if we don't? There's just as good of a chance that one of us won't walk out of this."

"Where is this coming from?" I finally asked.

Zoe let out as soft sight before moving so that she was sitting across from me. "Bokomon told us what Crusadermon said." She said in a voice that was barely audible.

For a moment I sat in shock; I was almost a little afraid of what she, or the others, were going to say about it. "Oh," was all I could say. I couldn't look at her, I didn't want to see her expression, and I didn't want to know what she was thinking. If we weren't floating through space I would have probably have tried to get away from everyone.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked quietly. Honestly I was thinking about how I wanted Lucemon to attack right then so I could get out of the conversation but I obviously couldn't tell her that so I didn't say anything.

And neither did she. She just stared at me with her big emerald eyes.

"Please stop," I whispered, finally breaking eye contact. "It's just something I need to handle myself."

"But you don't have to," she said with a small smile. "You have us and I want to help. Please, just talk to me."

"About what?" in retrospect it would have been easier if I would have stayed quiet.

"Kouichi…"

"What do you want me to say? Because I really don't know." I sighed cradling my head in my hands. I heard her move back to my side before I felt her arm around my shoulder. And to my surprise, and pleasure, she didn't say anything else. We just sat there in silence for a few moments.

"I was kind of hoping that you were going to tell me it was all just a joke." She chuckled, resting her head on my shoulder. "I don't, we don't want to lose you."

"Don't worry about me; we all need to focus on Lucemon." I said, sitting up and taking her arm off me.

"You're right, but what happens after this?" She said, putting her arm back around me.

"We go back to our world," I said, trying to keep my voice steady.

"Stop tip-toeing around this! Do you have any idea what's going to happen to you when we get out of here?" She whispered looking slightly hurt as she took her arm off me.

"No," I answered honestly, but it wasn't sufficient for her. "It's better to not think about it. Whatever happens happens."

"Well that's not good enough!" Zoe said looking disheartened.

"It's the best I can do." I whispered, trying to fight back tears. I really hated seeing anyone like this especially Zoe. She just nodded and allowed a few of her tears to slip out.

After a few minutes of sitting in a silence that was only broken by the distant noise of our friends or a sniffle or two from Zoe, she finally spoke up. "So there really is a good chance we might never see you after this?"

"Yes," I whispered solemnly "but you shouldn't dwell on that."

"You're saying I should ignore the fact that one of my best friends might be dead?" she asked, shocked. "That's not gonna happen."

I couldn't help but to sigh, I knew her intentions were good it's just that she can be emotionally draining at times. "It has too. When Lucemon comes you should, no you must forget everything Bokomon said. There are more important things to worry about. And if by chance anything does happen to me promise that you won't let it affect your fighting and promise me that you'll make sure everyone else gets out safely."

For a moment she just stared at me with a mixture of horror and concern. "You actually think…"

"Promise me" I said sternly, cutting her off. She nodded and allowed a few more tears to streak her cheek. "Thank you," I muttered grabbing her hand and giving it a small squeeze.

And when I squeezed her and she let out a soft sob. "But I need you Kouichi." She said in a trembling voice that nearly broke my heart.

I slowly put my arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer so that her head was on my shoulder again. "I'm sorry," was all I could whisper.

And we just sat there in silence, well aside from Zoe's soft crying. After a few minutes she sat up straight and just stared intently at me with her bloodshot eyes which ironically made the color of her eyes more intensely beautiful.

"Yes?" I whispered when she didn't say anything.

"You're going to make it out of here." She said firmly without breaking eye contact. A wave of relief swept over me when she said that, I didn't believe her I was just glad that she had something to believe in. "You've gone through too much shit already," she continued. "There's nothing you can't do, including this."

I couldn't bring myself to say anything to contradict her so I simply smiled weakly and pulled her into a hug. "Buona fortuna" She said squeezing me tighter and kissing me lightly on the cheek.

And we both knew that a great deal of luck was exactly what I needed.


	8. Jolt!

_Author's note: What happened to this story? Thirty Kisses started off as a happy, kind of awkwardly fluffy fic and it just went downhill from there. So I apologize that all these chapters have been border-line depressing but I can't help but to like sad fics better than when everything works out in the end. So here's another dismal story for you all. It's the sequel to violence (the last chapter). The italicized are flashbacks (to the last chapter) and it switches POV throughout the chapter, it starts in Zoe's perspective. (also I tried to base it off ep. 48 and I'm sorry it doesn't follow it completely)_

theme: #3 jolt!  
**disclaimer in Swedish: jag äger inte digimon**

* * *

And I braced myself for the worse. I knew this was the end, it had to be. So many thoughts were running through my head. Most were about how our young lives were about to be cut short, how or if our parents would find out and how we failed. I knew that if I looked at the others it would be too painful but I couldn't help myself. Everyone's face was so full of fear and sadness, it almost broke my heart. For a moment I was so preoccupied with everyone's expression I almost didn't notice Kouichi wasn't there. My initial reaction was panic; not that I wanted him with us; I just wanted to know that he was safe. When I finally did find him a wave of relief swept over me. Mostly because that meant the digital world still had hope. If anyone could defeat Lucemon it was Kouichi. In the wake of our demise I felt a calmness that I didn't expect and with one final look at my friends I accepted my destiny; that was until I took my last glance at Kouichi. For a moment he stared blankly back but then he had that intense look in his eye, he was up to something. And when Lucemon threw that ball of dark energy I saw Kouichi rushing towards us. He was going to play the hero.

"_And if by chance anything does happen to me promise that you won't let it affect your fighting and promise me that you'll make sure everyone else gets out safely"_

I couldn't help but let out a nervous squeak which caught Kouji's attention. He followed my gaze until his eyes fell on Kouichi and when he let out the most heart-wrenching cry I had ever heard.

"_So there really is a good chance we might never see you after this?"_

"_Yes,"_

He was going to beat the attack; he was going to save us. He shouldn't have. The moment he turned away from us my heart stopped and I let out a cry of disapproval, as though if he heard me he might change his mind. But it was too late he had sealed his fate.

"_But I need you Kouichi."_

"_I'm sorry,"_

_--_

The force of Lucemon's attack caught me a little off guard and I had to struggle for a moment to remain conscience. A part of me almost wishes I would have passed out, at least then I wouldn't need to see my friends staring into the face of death. For a moment my terror immobilized me. I almost couldn't handle seeing them that way. Tommy looked completely distraught and J.P. looked as though he was about to be sick. Takuya was glaring at Lucemon trying to mask his fear, though I could see through it and for the first time ever my brother looked thoroughly defeated. At first I tried not to look at Zoe, I knew that her fear would kill me but I couldn't help myself and I cautiously took a glimpse of her. She looked so calm when she returned my gaze and with a jolt I knew what I had to do.

"_I just want all of us to make it out of this in one piece."_

"_Don't worry, we can do this."_

I couldn't let them die. They had done nothing to deserve an end like this and I was going to do everything in my power to save them. When Lucemon released that ball of dark energy so indifferently it just fueled my anger. So with the last of my strength I hurled myself towards the others. I was so close to making it when I heard my brother's cry. I couldn't help but to flinch a little; I hated causing him pain but I knew that I was doing the right thing. They needed to save the digital world and they could do it without me. Kouji would forgive me someday.

"_I don't, we don't want to lose you."_

I had done it, I had passed the energy. It was almost euphoric to know that I was going to save them. That was until I heard Zoe. She just couldn't make anything easy for me could she? I had to ignore her and the others in order to save their lives. I needed to stop this attack no matter what the consequences might be.

"_But I need you Kouichi."_

"_I'm sorry,"_

--

After what seemed like forever his strength finally gave out. We all stared in silence as we watched his arms fall to his side; we just simply didn't want to believe it. Then he spoke to us in a voice so calm and brave beyond his years, and to be honest I didn't want to hear it.

"_You're going to make it out of here."_

And then he said the thing we most dreaded. "I wish I could see you back in the real world, but I don't think I'll be able to." My heart stopped. This couldn't' be happening, I didn't want to hear what was said next so I closed my eyes and tried to shut it out, this was one memory I didn't need. When Kouji began pleading with his brother I lost it and tears began pouring uncontrollably.

"_You're saying I should ignore the fact that one of my best friends might be dead?"_

When I heard whatever was holding him shatter my eyes shot open in horror and I just stared transfixed by what was happening. He was giving his spirits to Kouji; he was really going to leave us. Then he spoke to Kouji almost as though he was trying to tell him that he loved him without actually saying it and though I was still crying profusely it almost made me smile; it reminded me what a great person he was and why he made me feel the way I did. And In the split second before his data was scanned, our eyes met. Blue met green and then… nothing. It was over, he was gone.

"_But I need you Kouichi."_

"_I'm sorry,"_

--

I just couldn't hold it anymore so I let my arms fall to my side and the attack to engulf me. As I floated there I spoke to the rest almost to calm their fears. I knew it wouldn't work but it was worth a shot, also I needed them to know that it was ok.

_"It's better to not think about it. Whatever happens happens."_

It took everything I had to keep a steady voice when I told them that this would be the end. I hated that I had to hurt them again but it was the right thing, it needed to be done. Then Kouji began pleading with me. I hated to hear him sounding so vulnerable, he was the strong twin, and he needed to be.

"_Do you have any idea what's going to happen to you when we get out of here?" _

"_No," _

My enclosure finally broke with the last of my strength holding me in the digital world I gave my spirits to Kouji. He looked terrified and I knew I was hurting him, he needed to save the world and he couldn't without those spirits. I told him how much meeting him had meant to me and though it couldn't change anything I wanted him to know that I would do it over in a heartbeat. I was finally ready to let go but I couldn't leave without seeing Zoe one last time. Our eyes meant for a second and I would have given anything to tell her how I really feel and to kiss her goodbye but I knew I couldn't so I stopped fighting and allowed my data to be scanned.

"_But I need you Kouichi."_

"_I'm sorry,"_


	9. The Space Between Dream And Reality

_Author's note:_ _welcome to my oddest story ever. first let me honestly say this made more sense in my head than it does on "paper" so i apologize in advance if this confuses anyone. anyway this is kind of a sequel to the last chapter_

theme: #6 the space between dream and reality  
**disclaimer in pashto: زه نه په خپلو digimon**

* * *

I tried to open my eyes but it was so hard; my eyelids were just too heavy and the cool concrete was welcomed on my skin. Wait, cool concrete? With what felt like most of my strength I slowly opened my eyes. Once I brushed the hair from them all I could see were what seemed like a herd of feet shuffling around my head. Slowly I raised my torso so I could get a better view of my surroundings. I knew I had been here before I just couldn't place it. I pondered this for a moment until I turned to the left and saw a large staircase with a familiar blonde. She was sitting on the third step just staring at me vigilantly, not even flinching at the people rushing around her.

"Zoe," I whispered hoarsely, my voice almost seemed foreign as though I hadn't used it in a while. She didn't respond, instead she continued to stared at me or rather through me. I slowly turned around to see if anything was behind me and when I found nothing I turned back to her only to find she still hadn't moved an inch.

As I stood up and took a step towards her I noticed that not one person was giving me a strange look or even acknowledging me at all. Of course I found that odd but I shook it off and stood in front of Zoe, her eyes were locked on mine and for a moment neither of us moved.

"What's going on?" I asked, my voice shaking slightly as I began to panic. I couldn't understand anything and I was a little frustrated with Zoe and how she refused to say anything. And to my dismay she just continued to stare transfixed on me.

I was about to turn away from her when I noticed a man on the landing above us dropped his bag and it was sliding towards Zoe. Instinctively I reached to pull her out of the way but froze when instead of hitting her back it continued through her until it stopped in front of my feet. By this point saying I was freaked out would have been an understatement. I slowly reached for the fallen bag, I wanted to be helpful but more than that I needed time to sort everything out before facing Zoe again, but instead of grabbing the handle my hand went straight through it.

"Zoe?" I whispered, without even trying to keep my voice steady. Still she didn't speak instead she grabbed my wrist and gently pulled me next to her. "What's going on?" I asked again.

And finally she spoke, "Don't you recognize this place?" not really the answer I was looking for but at least it was a start. And with a sigh I stood up to get a better look at the place.

"This is where I fell," I whispered as I sat back down, hoping that now that I had 'solved her riddle' she would answer my questions. "But why are we here? Are we really here?"

"Kouichi what's the last thing you remember?" she asked, completely ignoring my questions.

Her eyes would have been my honest answer but instead I told her the Digital World.

_The Digital World…sacrificing myself…the fall…_

"If I'm dead why are you here?" I whispered. And she chuckled. I was more than likely at the coroner's office and she was sitting there chuckling. I couldn't believe that she would laugh at a time like this.

"You're not dead yet," she laughed. _Yet?_

"Then where are we?" I asked as I began to panic again.

"Somewhere between dream and reality I guess," she said with a small smile. I don't know why but this calmed me down at first but I couldn't help but to over analyze her words.

"Wait, so the Digital World was just a dream?" I asked, praying that it wouldn't be.

"Does it make a difference if it was? And if it was wouldn't it be easier to meet Kouji now? You know he's real whether or not the Digital World is," by this point I was sick of her answering my questions with questions.

"It makes all the difference," I muttered in a low voice as I turned away from her and began watching the people around us. "Was it a dream?" I asked again in a more forceful voice without looking at her.

"Why do you think I'm here?" she asked as she grabbed my shoulders and forced me to look at her again.

"Obviously to annoy me," I muttered under my breath. She gave me a disapproving look but still laughed a little at this.

"Seriously, why am I here?" she asked without letting go of my shoulders.

"I don't know!" I nearly yelled. "I've been asking you that the whole time!"

For a moment she just stared at me before letting out a long sigh. "Why am I here and not Kouji?"

"I don't know! I don't know anything Zoe. Please stop messing with my head and just tell me what's going on!" I said in a weak voice.

Obviously this girl liked seeing me in pain because she continued to quiz me. "Well what's the difference between me and him?"

"I don't know," I sighed, completely giving up. "He's family, you're my friend. He's a guy; he'd actually answer my questions."

"You know he's real," she said simply, her emerald eyes looking miserable.

For a moment I sat in shock trying to figure out the significance of what she had just said.

"There's no way for you to lose him. He's the one constant between your life and the digital word." She said looking surprisingly upset.

"I still don't understand," I mumbled.

"Think about it," she said softly as she let go of my shoulders and folded her hands in her lap.

"Well," I mumbled, shutting my eyes and letting out a low sigh "I'm not sure if the digital world is real or not…" When I said this I looked at her and noticed a smile creeping over her face, I was on the right track. "So subconsciously I wanted to trick myself into thinking it was real? And one way is to see you in the real word?"

"See," she laughed punching me lightly on the shoulder, "And you thought you didn't know."

"So it wasn't real at all was it?" I asked, tears welling up in my eyes

When I said this she reached out, grabbing my hand and lacing her fingers around mine before speaking, "Would you be ok if it was all a dream?"

"No," I whispered honestly.

"But the whole Duskmon thing wouldn't have happened. You wouldn't have to live with the guilt that I know you have now," she said smiling slightly as though what she was saying was a good thing.

I just stared at her for a moment as I tried to process everything that was happening. "It was worth it Zoe," I finally said. "I hate that I did those things, I really do. But I'd do it over in a heartbeat if it meant knowing my brother and you guys."

"Weren't you listening?" she said looking slightly aggravated. "You know Kouji's real. Don't let him justify what you've done."

"I'm not," I said quietly.

"Then why the hell would you want the digital world to be real? It's caused you so much pain, pain that you don't deserve," she said, squeezing my hand slightly.

"Because," I began slowly, "because yeah, I might have done terrible things but I think I was able to do great things also. It's those things that make all the pain worth it."

"Besides," I continued with a small smile, "I'm really glad that I met you guys, not just Kouji. And I don't think I could handle loosing you…any of you."

When I said this a small smile crept over Zoe's face and she stood up suddenly pulling me with her. "Come on," she said excitedly as she began to pull me down the hallway.

I'm not really sure why we were weaving between people if, based on the suitcase incident, we weren't solid but we did until we reached a door at the end of the corridor where she stopped so suddenly that I crashed into her. "Follow me," she said, as though I had choice, as she pulled me through the door.

We were now standing in front of a large double door in a really clean, almost sterile hallway. There were windows on the door and when I went to look through them Zoe pulled me back a little.

"Now what?"

"You wake up," She said kissing me lightly on the cheek as she let go of my hand and began walking down the hallway away from the door.

"Wait," I called as I ran after her, "You never told me if the Digital World was real or not."

"Guess you're just gonna have to figure it out yourself," she said with an almost Takuya-esque gleam in her eye. "But if it is," she continued, "I probably won't remember this."

And with that she turned and continued down the hallway. I took a step towards the double door before turning around and calling Zoe's name again but she wasn't there. It was as though she had vanished and with the way this day was going it wouldn't have surprised me at all.

And with one last look at where her retreating form should have been I slowly opened the double doors.


	10. Gardenia

_Author's note: This chapter is kind of like another sequel to chapter three but it doesn't work with chapter two. Does that make sense? I mean both chapter two and this chapter are sequels to chapter three but they are two separate story lines. _

Theme: #11 Gardenia  
**Disclaimer in Czech: I nejsou vlastní digitální výroba**

* * *

"You seem really down Kouichi, what's up?" J.P. asked as he and Tommy filed into the booth where Takuya and the twins were already sitting.

"Nothing." Kouichi murmured without taking his eyes off the menu. The others exchanged glances, they knew what was wrong. It was the same thing that had been bothering him for months now: Zoe. She had moved to Italy two years ago and she hadn't made contact with any of them in nearly a year. The separation was taking its toll on every member of the group but Kouichi seemed to be taking it the hardest.

"We've known you too long to believe that," Takuya laughed, trying to get him to open up to them.

"Speaking of that," J.P. began after Kouichi refused to respond, "Saturday's the five year anniversary of-"

"No way!" Tommy interrupted, pulling out his phone to check the date.

"It's been five years?" Takuya mused with a far off look in his eye, "it seems like just yesterday."

"Really?" Kouji asked, astonished. "A lifetime ago is more like it."

"Has anyone heard from Zoe?" Kouichi interrupted, finally looking up from his menu.

"Sorry buddy," J.P. sighed, "Her mom did answer once but she said Zoe was 'out.'"

"So she's missing it?" Tommy sighed, referring to their annual picnic in the subway basement. Granted it wasn't the most sanitary place it was a close as they could get to the Digital World.

"'Fraid so," Takuya muttered sadly. "Don't worry, we'll call her when we're there, maybe we can get her on speaker phone."

-

"You're not going to skip out on us now are you?" Kouji asked, cocking an eyebrow at his brother when Kouichi told him he was just going to meet him at the subway instead of going together.

"I just need to clear my head," Kouichi mumbled as he left Kouji's house.

He continued to walk until he found himself on the bank of the lake that he and his friends would waste away their summers. "I can't go down there without you Zoe," Kouichi mumbled to himself as he sat down on a fallen tree.

"I need you to reassure me, as you do every year, that I'm not evil, that the darkness in my heart is gone. I need your constant bickering with Takuya. I need to hear you hum softly whenever we would go on walks. I need you to know how important you are to me."

"I need to know why you left," he whispered, tears streaking his cheeks. "Stupid gardenia," he muttered plucking the small flower that caught his eye. "You were always Zoe's favorite, god knows why."

"Because they had to be someone's," he heard a voice from behind him. It took him only a split-second to register who it was and when he did he stood up so suddenly he almost lost his balance.

"Zoe!" he whispered breathlessly taking a few step towards her only to have her take a step back.

"Hey," she muttered with a small, slightly forced smile.

"You're here," Kouichi said breathlessly not even noticing her demeanor. "You're actually here," he said running up and wrapping his arms around her.

"Yeah," she muttered, stiffening when he came in contact with her.

"I just can't believe you're actually here, it's been forever."

"A year to the day," she whispered, pushing him gently off her.

"What's wrong?" he asked once he realized she was looking everywhere but at him. "Are you ok?"

"Of course," she said with another forced smile.

"Zoe…I've known you too long to believe that," he chuckled slightly.

"Why aren't you at the picnic?" she quickly asked, ignoring his previous statement.

When she said that he immediately remembered why he was at the lake and all the negative emotions came flooding back to him like a tsunami. "I couldn't go there without you," he mumbled, a slight blush creeping over his face.

"Kouichi," she sighed, hanging her head a little.

"You heard what I said didn't you?" he muttered as he lowered himself onto the fallen tree again.

"Kinda," she said, sitting on the other end of the log.

"Well?" he asked, fiddling with his hands.

"Well what?"

"Why did you leave?" he said, a tear falling down his face when he looked at her.

Instead of reaching out to grab his hand or to hug him like Kouichi was accustomed to her doing she simply stared at his hands for a moment before answering, "because of my dad's job."

"No, why didn't you call or answer our calls or e-mails or anything? It's like you dropped off the face of the earth."

"I've been busy," she said as she began to play with her hair.

"Don't give me that bull Zoe. Why were you avoiding us?" he asked, glaring slightly at his blond friend.

"I wasn't avoiding you," she said in a small voice.

"Bullshit!" he said in a louder-than-necessary voice as he stood up so quickly that Zoe jumped slightly. "Why were you avoiding us?"

"I didn't mean to," she said, shrinking a little under his gaze.

"But you did, why?"

"I really was busy at first," she mumbled after a drawn out sigh. "I took up drawing, I know it sounds weird but I needed something to pass the time without you guys. So I'd go and draw the architecture. So I really was out a lot."

"Then what?" he asked gently, sitting beside her and for the first time she didn't move away.

"Well, I was home one night and I got a call from Kouji. He said that everyone was worried," she paused for a second, looking ashamed of what she was saying. "He also said that you missed me a lot and you were really, really down. And I felt so bad. I guess I thought if I ignored you enough eventually you'd start to hate me and it wouldn't hurt you anymore."

"You wanted me to hate you?" Kouichi asked, astonished. "Sure not hearing from you was frustrating but I could never _hate_ you."

"I guess I always knew that," she laughed softly. "But I still tried."

"Why would you ever want me to hate you though?"

"Because I'd rather hurt myself than hurt you," she answered with a small, genuine smile.

"I still don't understand."

"Because I'm not coming back," she whimpered as tears began pouring down her face. "I just don't think Japan's right for me anymore. I found a great college in Italy and I think this might be my last time in Japan. And I didn't want to hurt you."

Kouichi opened his mouth to say something but quickly stopped. He shrugged and smiled, it was the strangest smile she had ever seen: it held secret amusement and heartbreak and an infinite bitterness. "I think I've always known that," he said quietly. "Since that night when you showed up on my doorstep I knew it was going to be a permanent thing."

"I'm so sorry Kouichi," she mumbled, tears still streaking her face as she stood up.

"Have you told the others?" he asked, standing up also and shoving his hands into his pockets.

"I went to the subway first, I thought you were all going to be there and when Kouji said you needed to clear your head I took a guess and well, here we are."

"So this is really it?" Kouichi muttered. She simply nodded before she fell into his arms and began sobbing.

"It'll be ok," he whispered as he placed his chin on her head, thanking adolescence for finally giving him a height advantage over Zoe. "You were meant for Italy," he whispered, stroking her hair.

"I always thought I was meant for you," she whispered into his t-shirt in a voice so low Kouichi didn't hear.

And the two just stood there until Zoe's sobs finally died down. "I have a plane to catch," she finally said, pulling out her phone to check the time. "You should probably head to the picnic. Goodbye Kouichi," she said as she wiped her eyes and smoothed out her hair. "I'll keep in touch this time," and with that she turned and began to walk away.

For a moment Kouichi just stared in shock at her retreating form, thinking about how he could still feel her warmth and smell her citrus body spray before he took off in a sprint after her.

"Zoe," he called breathlessly when he caught up to her. Before he could respond he firmly grabbed her shoulders and kissed her. When they broke apart they both just stared at each other for a moment. "Don't leave me."


	11. Unrivaled

Author's note: AHHHHHHHHH!!!!! I'm a college kid!!!!!! AHHHHH!!! hahaha ok. But seriously, I moved in yesterday and I adore it! I have five roommates (i know that's a lot but they're the best) Our first night we went outside and just started walking around and somehow we ended up in some random people's dorm it was cool (a little wierd but cool) then we went back outside and started waving people out of their rooms until we got a huge group of people (ok only like 20 but still it's impressive for the first night) and we all just hung out under a pavilion. and today we had a volleyball tournament and our team made it to the semi's and that was my play by play of college so far hahaha. i know in my other story i said i wasn't going to update but i had down time and i thought you guys deserved something before i start classes on Wednesday. anyway you should all be proud of me, this is another story in third person! that's two in a row! that hasn't happened since chapters 3 & 4!! anyway i'll explain the title at the end. oh and this is yet another sequel to chapter three hahah and the song "Does this mean you're moving on?" by The Airborne Toxic Event inspired this chapter. i suggest letting that be your background music. hahaha

to LupineLover: it's freakin' hard to think of thirty ideas for one-shots!! haha but i'm trying my best :D

Theme: #16- unrivaled  
**Disclaimer in Urdu: مجھے نہیں ڈجٹل ‫رٹ‬ ‫ں**

* * *

You can't just drop everything and go over there," Kouji sighed as he watched Kouichi frantically shove things into his backpack.

"Why not?" he asked without slowing down.

"Because we're not talking about going around the corner, it's half way across the world," Kouji said with a look on his face as though he was beginning to question his brother's sanity.

"I need to see her," he said simply as he checked the contents of his backpack.

"Then call or write a letter or something," Kouji groaned.

"I need to see her," he reiterated.

Kouji just shook his head as he followed Kouichi out of his room. "You're not thinking straight. How are you going to pay for a plane ticket to Italy let alone back?"

"I have money," Kouichi said, not paying full attention to Kouji as he gathered a few things from the kitchen before heading outside.

When Kouichi said this Kouji burst into laughter which caused Kouichi to stop and face his brother. "You never have money! There is no way you have enough to pay for this."

"I have savings," Kouichi shrugged as began walking again.

"College savings?" Kouji asked, shocked. "You can't use that money for this!"

"Why not?" Kouichi asked as they waited at the bus stop. "My grades are good enough to get me scholarships at any college in the country and I got a 34 on the ACT, I'm not Takuya." _(Author's note: yeah, yeah they wouldn't take the ACT I know. I took that test so I decided to use it. Can't say I got a 34 though haha I only got a 28 :/ anyway back to the story.)_

Kouji knew his brother had a point and the two lulled into silence until they were at the airport.

"What's mom gonna say when she realizes you aren't home?" Kouji sighed, knowing he'd never talk his brother out of this but he couldn't give up.

"She knows," Kouichi said simply. "I couldn't lie to her, besides I'll be back in two days."

"Wait, you'll be flying for about thirty hours total and you'll only spend eighteen actually in Italy?"

"Yeah something like that," Kouichi shrugged.

"You're an idiot," Kouji sighed.

"Zoe tends to do that to people," Kouichi laughed as his flight was called.

Kouichi quickly grabbed this backpack and walked towards the gate. "Just don't get your hopes up," Kouji said seriously as he patted his brother's shoulder.

Kouichi just smiled as he walked to security.

--

A little over fifteen hours later Kouichi was standing in the Ancona Falconara Airport with only his back pack and a MapQuest map to Zoe's house. As he walked towards Zoe's house he was captivated by just how astounding Italy was. It was no wonder Zoe a chose it. He also heard many phrases Zoe would use with them. Though he didn't know what most of them meant he couldn't help but to smile.

"Buongiorno"

"Ovviamente"

"Idiota"

He mentally kicked himself for not knowing more Italian; he had been around it enough, he should have picked something up. He did know one phrase though, the only one that mattered at that moment, "Mi sei mancato molto!"

Finally he came to Zoe's house and for a moment he was awestruck- it was gorgeous. Of course he thought all Italian architecture was gorgeous; there was just something special about hers.

With one final deep breath he knocked on Zoe's door. "Kouichi! Dunque buono vederla!" Mrs. Orimoto said happily as she let Kouichi into the house.

Kouichi just shrugged at the expression, "Is Zoe here?" he asked, masking his nervousness quite nicely.

"She's in her room, upstairs and to the right but-"

"Thank you," Kouichi cut her off and made his way quickly up the stairs, thinking about what he would say. _"Hi Zoe, what's up? No, not personal enough. Hello Zoe, it's been a while. That's probably the creepiest thing I could possibly say. Zoe, I love you. No I might get slapped."_

He paused in front of her door for a moment before placing his hand on the knob. The door was partially open and right when he was going to push it open he heard Zoe giggle.

He couldn't help but smile when he heard her, he had really missed her. "You're such an idiot," she laughed. He immediately thought she was on the phone and didn't want to interrupt so he patiently leaned against the wall.

"You're serious though?" She said almost breathlessly. This sparked Kouichi's curiosity and he silently pushed the door open a little and peered inside. And what he saw caused his heart to drop.

Zoe was standing there her mouth open, trying to smile and her eyes were wide. That wasn't what stopped his heart though. It was why her mouth was open. Takuya, yes Takuya of all people, was holding Zoe's hands with a goofy grin on his face. Zoe opened and closed her mouth a few more times as though she was trying to form words. When she didn't say anything Takuya's grin only widened as he leaned in and placed his lips softly on hers.

Kouichi silently shut the door and just stared at it for a while. He wasn't outraged like he should have been. He was just numb.

* * *

Author's note: yep the theme is kinda ironic but it's the best i could find to fit this. anyway see ya later!! yes it's sort but anything else would have ruined the feel of it. the next chapter will be a sequel to this (yes another sequel!! haha)


	12. Chapter 12

Author's Note: for all authors who are not in college be warned your writing time will decrease DRASTICALLY when you start college (especially if you go to the most amazing college in America) ahaha but seriously i never have time to write...ever! So instead of longer chapters like i usually do i've only been able to do these mini stories. i got these ideas from this mimato story "Music Mix Up" it's a good story...i'd suggest reading it. anyway the author wrote each story during the time the song played, no longer. and because i only have like four minutes of free time i'm going to do a few of the same haha.

This story was inspired by **Keeper-Yellowcard**

**Disclaimer in Hungarian: Én nem saját digitális akit**

* * *

It didn't matter what she said to me...a tiny part of her would always see me as Duskmon. No matter how many times I do good she will always be able to see the evil inside me.

But I guess it's better that way. She needs someone who isn't capable of hurting her, someone who can hold and kiss her and unfortunately for me I know I can't.

Even if a tiny part of her wanted to love me I can't allow her to. If I was somebody else maybe…but I'm not. I can never be with Zoe because she doesn't deserve someone like me…someone evil.

* * *

uthor's Note: seriously no time. but this is more of the type of story that the first 30 kisses i read were like  
(it was also Kouizumi and if you're interested the link is http://www. live journal. com/ tools /memories. bml?user=30_kisses & keyword=Digimon: +Kouichi /Zoe &filter=all (minus the spaces)

anyway i'll see you if i ever have free time again haha adios


	13. News

_Author's note: Hello all…first let me tell you that I am writing this note before I write the actual chapter, which I rarely do. I'm just doing it now to get the creative juices flowing because to be honest my muses (Melpomene and Thalia) have abandoned me…it's quite sad really. But I digress, I've been uber unmotivated lately and I just couldn't bring myself to write anything. i couldn't even write the chapter that I was planning to do, the sequel to "unrivaled", I knew exactly what was going to happen. Hell, I could practically recite it in my head, I just couldn't write it. Well, yesterday I was watching South Park and this idea popped into my head and I suddenly really wanted to write (I know, I know Thalia couldn't get me to write but Stan could haha) anyway this is inspired by an episode on South Park…but to be honest what happens between Zoe and Kouichi in this chapter is a concept that is covered in many things…and I apologize a million times if anyone has a story like this for Digimon Frontier cause I have a strong feeling it's been done, I just can't place it…anyway on to the story._

Theme 2- news; letter  
**Disclaimer in simplified Chinese: 我不拥有数字怪物**

* * *

"Time out!" Takuya called across the field to his five friends on a warm October afternoon, "Kouichi, you ok buddy?" he said as the group gathered in the center of the soccer field after Kouichi let in the third consecutive goal.

After a sort bout of coughs Kouichi nodded his head, "Of course, it's nothing."

"Well that nothing has been around for a while. Maybe you should see a doctor," the youngest boy said as he attempted to juggle the soccer ball.

"It's just a cold," Kouichi replied quickly before letting out a few rough coughs.

Once Kouichi's coughs had subsided J.P. snatched the ball from Tommy and began walking back to his goal, "Come on guys, Kouichi's always sick, he must know what he's talking about."

"You got a point," Takuya muttered, still not a hundred percent convinced.

"I swear I'm fine," Kouichi sighed as he began walking towards his goal.

"Hold on," Zoe said as she grabbed onto Kouichi's arm. "Is that blood?"

Kouichi glanced at his arm and indeed there was a little bit of blood from his latest coughing fit.

"Ok, now we're really going to see a doctor," Kouji grumbled as he grabbed Kouichi's arm and dragged him from the fields.

---

"So how's Kouichi? Did you actually get him to go to the doctor?" Takuya chuckled without looking up from the TV when Kouji entered his house later that night.

"You guys…Kouichi's in the hospital," Kouji mumbled. This statement was met with a solid minute of dead silence.

"For like…so like they can give him medications right?" Tommy asked in a slightly shaky voice.

Kouji simply hung his head and mumbled, "they think that he has pneumonia."

Takuya was the first to speak after this piece of information, "ok, pneumonia isn't that bad…Kouichi's definitely had worse."

"Wait, think?" Zoe asked in a slightly higher pitch than usual.

"Yeah well…he's showing signs of pneumonia but they're not sure," Kouji mumbled. Though he would never say anything to make the others worry they could tell by his voice that Kouji thought it was more than just that. "They said he can have visitors tomorrow, they need time to run some tests today I guess."

"Kouichi's always getting himself into trouble," J.P. chucked nervously in an attempt to lighten the mood. Unfortunately, the statement only received glares from the others.

-

The moment the final bell rang after school the next day the group sprinted to the hospital where they were greeted by the doctor.

"How is he?" Takuya, being the first to catch his breath, blurted out as the others gasped for air.

The doctor just looked at the worried expression on the young teens faces and hung his head a little. "I'm afraid that we found a tumor in his lungs," he replied solemnly.

This response was met with open-mouthed stares from the group until Tommy finally broke the silence. "That's not terrible. You can operate on it right?" he muttered, trying his best to be optimistic.

"I'm afraid this isn't a regular tumor," the doctor said as he placed his hands in a comforting way on Kouji and J.P.'s shoulders. "Instead of being a solid mass, like a ping pong ball for example, it is more like a spider web that's slowly filling his lungs. There is little that can be done to stop it," he finished.

"So he's….." Takuya stammered, glancing at the others nervously.

"I'm sorry, we're doing everything we can do," the doctor said, taking his hands off the boys.

The group just stood in a stunned silence for a few moments until J.P. finally came out of his stupor, "Kouichi can't die…he's Kouichi!"

"How long…when will…" Kouji stuttered, focusing his attention on his shoes.

"Soon I'm afraid. You can see him though if you'd like, room 117" The doctor said as he gestured to the end of the hall.

---

"How ya feeling buddy?" Takuya asked after a few moments of slightly awkward silence once the group was in the room.

Kouichi couldn't help but to smile a little at his friends and muttered a soft "I've been better."

"Well, when you get out of here we're gonna finish up that match…we need to kick Takuya's ass," Tommy chirped. At first the others turned in shock at the young boy until they realized that Tommy had the right idea. There was no reason to sulk and make Kouichi feel worse, the best thing for Kouichi now was to keep him looking on the bright side.

"Ok Tommy," Kouichi chuckled, though he knew he would more than likely never leave the hospital.

"You guys could never beat me and J.P," Takuya said as he and J.P. folder their arms in unison.

"We could if Kouji would play," Tommy whined, giving Kouji his best puppy dog eyes.

"That's not going to happen," Kouji snarled though the others could tell he was trying to hide a smile.

"But the teams would be uneven," Kouichi laughed, "we'd need Zoe to play but I don't think that's going to happen either," Kouichi smiled at his blond friend.

For a moment Zoe was taken aback by Kouichi's disposition but she still tried to force a smile, "Yeah…uhh…I…I can't do this," she stammered before she ran from the room.

"Zoe wait!" Takuya yelled as he went after her.

---

"What the hell Zoe?" Takuya screamed when he found her on a bench in the front yard on the hospital. "You can't just walk away like that!"

"I just can't see him like that, with all the wires and IVs and it's just too much," Zoe whispered between sobs.

"I know, I hate seeing him like that too but we have to be there for him. He needs us," Takuya muttered as he sat next to her and put his arm around her.

"I can't be in there right now," she muttered as she pushed a strand of hair out of her face.

"Zoe you can't just leave him," Takuya sighed, slightly in shock that Zoe of all people would abandon Kouichi.

"I'm not the one who's leaving! He is!" Zoe cried as she threw herself into Takuya's arms and continued to sob.

---

After nearly a week the others were finally able to convince Zoe that she needed to visit Kouichi. So after school she made her way to the hospital alone. Takuya has soccer practice, J.P. was in detention and Kouji and Tommy were helping their parents with chores around the house, though she was nervous to see Kouichi alone she was secretly grateful to have him to herself for a while.

"Kouichi?" Zoe said in a voice hardly above a whisper as she walked into his room.

"Hey! I didn't think you were going to come," Kouichi said excitedly as he put down _"The Importance of Being Earnest."_

"I guess I was just waiting for you to be released." Zoe hesitated before chuckling slightly.

"You can sit down you know…" he muttered as he dropped his gaze, pointing to an empty chair. "Zoe, you do know I'm not leaving the hospital this time right?" he said in a quiet voice once she was seated.

For a moment she didn't respond, she only began to shake slightly as she was holding back sobs. "Kouichi…" she was finally able to mutter before flinging herself into his arms and burying her head into his chest.

"I'm sorry Zoe," he muttered as he stroked her hair and planted a light kiss on the top of her head.

"Why does everything always happen to you?" she whispered after the sobs had subsided.

"Better me than one of you guys," he said with a slight shrug.

His statement was met with Zoe sitting up so suddenly she would have hit her head on his chin had he not moved in time. "But Kouichi…you're dying," she said incredulously.

"It's not like it'll be the first time it'll have happened," he said with a slight laugh.

"But it's real this time…" she said as tears poured down her cheeks.

"I know, It's ok," he replied quietly as he pulled her back into his arms.

* * *

_Author's Note: sorry it seemed like it just randomly ended...i just don't feel like killing off Kouichi today...sorry haha_


	14. Kiss

_Author's note: HOLY CRAP! HAZELEYEDHARMONY IS UPDATING? NO WAY, IT'S PROBABLY AN AUTHOR'S NOTE CLEVERLY PLACED TO DRAW READERS' ATTENTION TO THE STORY! I HEARD IT WAS LEGIT. REALLY? CAUSE I'M NOT SURE..._

_but all cap locks aside this is legit and i wrote a story. Weird right? I would like to say i'm sorry from the bottom of my heart. College killed my free time but it's summer so i should be able to update a little. But as a teaser i'm planning a HUGE one-shot centered around Mimi...i know, you don't want to hear about Mimi in a Kouizumi fic so here it is, the long awaited next chapter of thirty kisses!_

THEME: #30- kiss  
**disclaimer in Malay: Saya tidak raksasa digital sendiri**

(In Takuya's POV)  
and please don't hate me for how bad it is, i've been out of practice

* * *

They thought we never saw them. She thought I never saw them. We all knew though. We all knew from the beginning, or at least I did. Five became six and at that moment when she first shook hands with him I knew I would loose the girl of my dreams to this boy that I've only known for an hour. Hell I think I knew before either of them knew so believe me when I say that the next two weeks were horrible for me. I'm not sure which was worse: watching her glances linger a little too long or watching his slight smiles when she wasn't looking. That was just how it started though. It eventually grew to their hands lightly grazing while they set up camp. Yes, I know it seems petty but I loved her. I know I'm only eleven so this must seem crazy right? If I had a normal life than yes this would be crazy but I had looked death in the eyes and smirked one too many ties; I knew what love was and that made this hurt worse…

"All I'm saying," J.P. laughed as we sat around fire, "is that if it came down to it Kouji would totally beat agent Gibbs in a staring contest."

"I can't believe we're having this conversation," Kouji groaned as the others laughed, I even did until I saw Zoe and Kouichi catch each others gazes and blush. I knew I had to stay cool, I couldn't loose it in front of Tommy, he couldn't see me in a negative light.

"Let's just call it a night," I said through gritted teeth.

Luckily no one caught my tone and they all voiced their agreements. "I'll take first watch," Zoe chirped as we all stood up.

Out of the corner of my eye I caught J.P. and Tommy high-five, we all knew that this was their least favorite chore. I also saw the twins exchange almost worried glances, though Zoe was a brilliant fighter her attention span wasn't long enough to let us feel completely safe with her on guard. I was fine with it though. At least _he_ wasn't on guard with her. Don't get me wrong; I like him, I do…I just hate that he's taking her from me. However I knew I needed to keep my feelings in check, we had more important things to deal with. So I forced myself to lie in my makeshift bed of leaves and try to get some rest.

Unfortunately I ended up staring at the sky for what felt like hours until I finally began drifting to sleep. But just as my luck would have it at almost that exact moment I heard a light giggle that could only belong to Zoe. My initial reaction was to ask what the hell could be so funny at one in the morning in the middle of an alternate universe but as soon as the words formed on my lips they died.

Zoe was sitting by the fire, covering her mouth to keep herself quiet and in her hand was the stick we had been using to prod the fire only now she was using it to prod Kouichi's feet.

"Zoe," Kouichi's voice came from my left and though I couldn't see all of him his muffled tone told me he hadn't sat up. "You're going to wake everyone."

As a side note that's another thing about him that I can't stand, even though it was clear he was half-asleep he put others first. I mean come on, is this kid not human?

"Stay up with me," Zoe whispered in a tone I've never heard. It wasn't a giggly flirty tone we've all heard before it was a weird…I wouldn't say it sounded pleading but there was a sense of almost urgency in her voice.

When I heard the rustle of leaves that signaled Kouichi standing I rolled over to get a better view, all while pretending to still be asleep. Once Kouichi was by her side there was a few minutes of silence that was only broken by a slight crackle from the fire. "Are you feeling better?" Zoe whispered, finally breaking the silence.

"Honestly?" Kouichi whispered, turning to face her, "no."

Instead of responding Zoe leaned in and wrapped her arms around him. At first her voice was muffled by either his or her own hair but once she pulled away I was able the catch the end of her sentence: "…you're fault. Even if it was it wouldn't change anything, Kouji would still love you and I'd…never mind" she giggled, turning away from him. And even though she was only being lit by the fire I could see her turn a shade darker.

It was quiet for a minute and I suddenly realized how tired I was. I was moments from falling asleep when Kouichi's voice immediately woke me. Yes, I know, I was being nosy but wouldn't you?

"Zoe," he whispered, quieter than he had all night.

"Yeah?" was her simple response as she turned to face him again.

"Would you be mad if I did this?" and before she could respond or I could comprehend what was happening he leaned forward and kissed her.

For a spit second I went into shock but I immediately snapped out of it and, on impulse, I sprung to my feet. "What the hell?" I all but shouted.

I immediately regretted my volume but my blood was boiling, it was like I couldn't control myself. Zoe and Kouichi immediately separated, blushing deeply and moving away from each other. Almost instantly the others were awake and gripping their D-tectors but I wasn't looking at them, I had my eyes trained on a beet red Zoe.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I hissed at the same moment Kouji asked what was going on.

I can't tell you what J.P. said to Kouji all I know is that me and Zoe we caught in an intense staring contest and after his statement the rest of the camp had fallen silent. "Well?" I seethed, not even trying to mask my anger.

In a split-second her shocked expression changed to one of anger and she stood also and took a threatening step towards me. "I swear if you're talking about what I think you are…" she muttered through gritted teeth, clenching her fists.

Her anger set me over the edge, she had no right to be mad at me. "How can you do that? Was there nothing between us? And of all people Kouichi? Does Duskmon taste good at least?" I screamed the last question, pointing an accusing finger at Kouichi.

As soon as those words passed my lips I knew I had crossed the line and the collective gasps of the others only solidified that fact. Before I could offer an apology a loud crack of Zoe's hand meeting my face broke the momentary silence. "Go to hell," she whispered before heading towards the woods.

"I'm sorry Kouichi," I muttered, forcing myself to look at him, which I was barely able to do.

"I know," he said in an even tone with just a hint of an understanding smile on his face before he followed Zoe away from camp.

"I really messed up didn't I?" I muttered, staring into the fire and I'm not sure if the others answered, I already knew the answer.

* * *

Author's note: well there it is...again i'm sorry if you hate it, i need to get back into the swing of things


End file.
